Your totally correct I always read about forth coming announcements on this forum well before there is any official statement on the site and even then the likes of BBC post the announcements before our own club website. IL and the club is out of touch with fan communication.

[urlhttp://www.wiganwarriors.com/WContent.aspx?id=6625&type=1[/url

It's official, personally I see this as massively disrespectful to the fans who pay his £300,000 a year, the great history of the club and all the legends that have come before Sam was even born. I really like Sam as a Wigan player but for this I will never see him as a Wigan legend total disrespect to the club. IL I am also disappointed with for allowing this to happen.

QuoteIan Lenagan, chairman and owner of Wigan said: "The Wigan club and Sam are very pleased to accept the Barbarians' invitation. Sam is an exceptional player in either code of rugby and his selection shows the growing mutual respect between the codes of rugby league and rugby union in England.
"It's a great opportunity for Sam to experience the Twickenham atmosphere and showcase his talents on another major stage."

You're right, it has got my dander up more!

This quote just confirms the views of many Union fans that League is the 2nd rate form of rugby, and that all our players dream of being able to play 'proper' rugby at Twickers. That kn0b head on the Telegraph site who said Joel was moving from Economy to Business Class by signing for Saracens will love quotes like this one.

There's no mutual respect - the RFU would like nothing more than for RL to disappear. They actively worked to that goal from 1895 onwards. Giving them a helping hand with a 'try before you buy' on Sam, and glowing quotes from RL chairmen about the Twickenham atmosphere simply plays into their hands.

Sorry, but it p*sses me right off.

Spot on.

IL is a mug and is doing RL a disservice with his recent pandering to RU.

Think there are some folk going slightly OTT on the situation. Im looking forward to going watching it. He will see out his 3 years, trust me.

for gods sake, the lad is playing 1 game of union against one of the best teams in the world. good luck to him, hope he rips the aussies apart and shows why league is the superior code and for the whingers about an announcement: www.wiganwarriors.com/WContent.a ... &type=news

for gods sake, the lad is playing 1 game of union against one of the best teams in the world. good luck to him, hope he rips the aussies apart and shows why league is the superior code and for the whingers about an announcement: www.wiganwarriors.com/WContent.a ... &type=news

Sorry Mr Lenagen you have totally lost the plot on this one. He may as well say why don't you have a look at our player so you can decide if you really want him in 3 years time. Apart from those who think IL can do no wrong I doubt there is any Wigan fan who wants to see Sam risked playing RU. And he isn't an exceptional player in RU either. He's never played it at this level.

Quite frankly I am astonished any chairman would agree a huge contract with a player one week and then let his prized asset swan around in a sport he has never played that could cause serious injury. What next? Skydiving or ski jumping?



I agree. There is no need for Sam to show case his talent playing RU because he doesn't play RU and I have absolutely no idea what IL means about the codes showing mutual respect for each other.



Me too. If he plays well we gain nothing, if he doesn't the headlines will be all about how RU has overtaken RL since Wigan played Bath.

Will Bilko be adding the fixture to his 'RL on tv' page?

Can you imagine if we'd have had message boards like this in the mid 90s when Connolly and Robinson went to RU for a few months in the off-season?

Connolly, Robinson, H Paul, R Paul, Mike Forshaw, Offiah... They all did an off season in RU didn't they?

Had they just signed contracts to the equivalent of £300,000 at the time?

I'm getting a rough idea of what it would have been like.

At least.

Any evidence to back that up? I have my doubts

Indeed. No salary cap and some Jack Robinson contracts. Given how our finances ended up not long after I'd say there were plenty of players on at least the equivalent of £300k today.

Yep, although not sure about Mike Forshaw? Weren't Connolly and R Paul both at Harlequins and Robinson and H Paul at Ba(r)th?

Any evidence that they hadn't? Players of that era were on more than the current lads. The big rusty statue in Tesco's car park is your evidence.

I doubt it. Even then there was limit and to suggest Wigan were playing half a dozen players about £1.5m does not wash.

The money is a side issue anyway. Letting your best player risk possible injury in another sport is IL's biggest mistake since he got here. It is quite frankly rank stupidity on his part.

Isn't it amazing how the reasons for Wigan's financial downfall vary from thread to thread depending on the subject matter.

I thought Wigan went bust due to a new stand?

My evidence would be most of them players named are still working today not one of them has retired and traveled the world with their suggested wealth.

Discovering a collapsing coal mine underneath it didn't help.

I'm sure even you would agree with that.

Just seen this quote in the WEP:
Yeah, I bet he did, lad. Since Andy Clarke sold his business and, effectively, the Tomkins lads to the RU-based agent Joel's gone to union, and we've had to pay Sam mega-bucks to keep him in RL.

I can see no benefits whatsoever from this for Wigan or RL, plus Sam runs the risk of being injured in what, even for yawnion, is a meaningless fixture. Is it ego or money that makes him want to do it? Can't see any other reason. I've always liked Sam but I'm furious with him, his agent and IL over this one.

Martin Offiah? Jason Robinson? You'll not catch either of them plastering your ceiling anytime soon. If anyone thinks players of that era weren't earning around the equivalent of Sam's money today (I'd suggest about £200k against 15 years of RPI) then you'd be deluded.

Meh, I'm no architect



I truly hope the horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach about both Sam's appearance at Twickers and the tie up with Saracens is misplaced.

I'm yet to hear a single decent reason for either development which is not based in fanciful "they're our best friends and in no way want to see the back of us" land.